Crafting Community and Conservation, One Stitch at a Time
Needlework and sewing techniques from Eastern cultures, particularly from regions like China, played a significant role in laying the groundwork for the development of crochet in Europe. Chinese embroidery and needlework, known for their intricate detail and craftsmanship, was influenced by the high cultivation of silkworms in China. The exchange of ideas and techniques, alongside quality silk cloths, drapes, banners, and other items of high prestige, spread westward through trade routes like the Silk Road which lead to the artistic and functional use of fibers in regions where textiles were crafted using new methods, ultimately paving the way for the evolution of crochet centuries later.
In addition to the influence from the East, Indigenous peoples across the world had long-standing fiber art traditions. Native American communities practiced techniques such as finger weaving, loom weaving, and net-making for thousands of years, crafting clothing, baskets, and fishing nets from plant fibers, animal sinew, and wool. Similarly, in South America, the Quechua people of the Andes developed intricate weaving and knitting techniques using alpaca and llama wool long before European influence.
As European colonization and trade expanded, crochet—a relatively modern technique in Europe, derived from the French word “croche,” meaning “hook”—began to spread. The practice of crocheting was seldom done for entertainment, yet due to the nature of crocheting as a form of community handiwork, women were able to create a long lasting tradition that was essential for mothers to pass down to the next generation of women. Once it was introduced, Indigenous communities in North and South America often incorporated crochet into their artistic practices in the 19th and 20th centuries. This integration blended crochet with their own ancient designs and methods, creating a rich, cross-cultural evolution of textile art.
The world of crochet has far modernized since this time, however, and while today it is considered a fun hobby that people of all kinds now participate in, the community at Crochet Coral Reef take the artistic integrity of crochet to a whole new level. Describing their initiative as a “...crafty retort to climate change,” the team of 25,00 male and predominantly female crocheters at Crochet Coral Reef work tirelessly to stitch together massive yet intricate coral reef configurations composed entirely of yarn and recycled materials. Across the globe, communities involved with Crochet Coral Reef have accumulated hundreds of thousands of hours of laborious stitch-work on community based projects called “Satellite Reefs,” a process referred to by the team as a “...one-stitch-at-a-time meditation on the Anthropocene.”
While on the surface this comes across as a seemingly heavy handed artistic venture, Crochet Coral Reef is more than just art. It’s an amalgamation of science-driven creativity, labor, mathematical structure, environmental mindfulness, and global community activism. As opposed to other genres of art, crochet is uniquely suited to embody coral structures as they look quite similar to the mathematically-patterned structures found in real coral organisms. Crochet Coral Reef constructed their installations using hyperbolic geometry, enabling the crocheters to create the three-dimensional structures found in natural coral reef formations. In fact, each crochet “species” comes from a “hyperbolic crochet” pattern discovered by Dr. Faina Taimina, a mathematician at Cornell. She observes these hyperbolic patterns give the impression that “...the art-making itself recapitulates processes at the heart of organic evolution.” This unique blend of mathematics and art not only bridges the gap between disciplines but also highlights how creative processes can mirror the complexities of nature, deepening the understanding of both the natural world and the abstract patterns that govern it.
Crochet is also, in itself, an incredibly eco-friendly craft. It’s a little to no waste way of hand-making sustainable items that can be used in everyday life. There are many eco-friendly crochet patterns for stitching grocery tote bags, mop heads, wash cloths, cup cozies, coasters, and others. The material used can vary in eco-friendliness, yet there are brands of yarn like “Handspun Hope” or “Michigan Fine Yarns” that strive to sell sustainable materials and be affordable. The beauty of crochet is that you don’t need anything fancy in order to make something useful. In fact, refugee women from the Democratic Republic of the Congo that have now settled in Milwaukee have been up-cycling plastic bags into crocheted baskets and mats in order to not only earn an income, but also help reduce plastic litter.
The story of Crochet Coral Reef begins in 2005 with Queensland, Australian sisters Margaret and Christine Wertheim. They took notice of the heartbreaking degradation of Australia's Great Barrier Reef as a direct result of human-caused climate change. In response to these devastating effects, what was once a small project has now become a global-community endeavor to raise awareness for environmental justice while also providing the opportunity for artistic inclusivity. The Wertheim sisters exemplify great respect and care for the community life on two levels; firstly in their attempt at restoring life to coral habitats which are home to over four-thousand species of marine life. Secondly, the project’s inclusivity invites communities of contributors from all different backgrounds – scientists, hobbyists, educators, and of individuals in prison – essentially anyone who can work a crochet hook. Given the flexibility of the project’s “Satellite Reefs,” installations are showcased in different places all over the world, created by people all over the world. There are fifty-two "Satellite Reef" installations in total, the most recent being hosted in Germany (2022), Austria (2023) and Pittsburgh (2023). This community-driven aspect is significant as it reflects the historical tradition of crochet as a collaborative craft, a devoted space where ideas, skills, and creativity can be shared.
What can we humans do when we work together, not ignoring ecological problems but also not capitulating to fantasies that rescue is around the corner from some sudden technological solution.~Crochet Coral Reef
It’s also important to consider that these communities of crocheters are also people who share a passion for bettering their environment, they are exemplifying their right to peacefully protest the terrible treatment of our planet by non-violently wielding crochet hooks. One of the quintessential purposes of this project lies within one overarching question: What can humans do to protect our environment? For Crochet Coral Reef the focus is directed towards protecting the Earth’s ecological integrity by bringing awareness to suffering coral reefs around the globe. In addition to providing shelter for animals, coral reefs also keep our waters clean by filtering out particulate matter. They are also crucial structures that protect coasts from storms, waves, and floods. Unfortunately, due to rising catastrophic climate events, researchers have observed a heavy increase of coral bleaching events. This process takes the vibrant ecosystem of electric blues and yellows and turns it a dingy white, also leaving the coral susceptible to stress and disease. Given the continued degradation of coral reefs, coastline populations could be subjected to catastrophic consequences such as the damage of homes, cities, and businesses that rely on the oceans. What good is a fisherman with no fish to catch? What good is a seafood restaurant with nothing to serve?
In 2016 and 2017 a major coral bleaching event affected Australia’s Great Barrier Reef as well as reefs around East Asia. In order to specifically commentate on this event, and to pay homage to the coral lost, Crochet Coral Reef created their own crocheted bleached reef in an exhibition called "Crochet Coral Reef: TOXIC SEAS.” This exhibition, composed of three separate "habitats," was showcased in the New York Museum of Arts and Design from September 2016 to January 2017. As pictured below, the “Bleached Reef” portion of the project is made of mostly white yarn, signifying the loss of color that occurs to dying coral.
While it’s important to recognize the negative changes coral environments have been experiencing as a direct result of climate change, there is still hope to be had in the restoration process as well. Crochet Coral Reef is only one of the many organizations bringing attention to marine concerns, and while this project does a great job at gaining awareness, it has its limitations on the physical task that is restoring coral reefs. Luckily, foundations like the Coral Reef Alliance, Reef Check, the Reef Resilience Network, and many others aim their focus at helping the coral reefs in a more hands-on way. For example, the National Marine Sanctuaries in the Florida Keys and the Coral Reef Gardners (adopt a coral) operate and support underwater coral nurseries in hopes of restoring genetic diversity among wild populations as coral reefs grow back.
It’s hard not to ask: why coral? What of other important environments? Why not crochet a rainforest teeming with an unlimited number of wild species facing extinction due to deforestation? Artists worldwide are producing a variety of eco-conscious installations , such as On the Horizon (2023) by artist/surfer Ana Teresa Fernández and Sarah Cameron Sunde 36.5/a durational performance with the sea (2023), which address melting glaciers and rising sea levels. However, while researching for this story I did not come across other environmental crochet projects, certainly not any that have gained as much traction as Crochet Coral Reef. It seems we are only just beginning to experiment with the way crochet, and other forms of art, have great potential to make major changes throughout the world.
Climate change is not going to be an easy fix, it is certainly not one that will happen overnight, either. This is why projects such as Crochet Coral Reef are so valued – they provide opportunities for environmentally focused communities to make a real, accessible step towards change while also creating stunning, visitable visual art pieces along the way.
Joleen is a graduating Senior English major at the University of Connecticut. During her Fall/Winter semester, she interned with Withitgirl, with a focus on music, art, culture and environment . She enjoys writing poetry and other creative non-fiction stories as well as indulging her artistic side through various crafts, especially collage, which she does both digitally and physically. Outside of her studies and creative pursuits, she has a passion for the culinary arts, particularly baking. She also has a deep appreciation for wildlife and spending time in the woods. She’s recently gotten into yoga and is a mediocre rock climber and bassist.
Additional Information
Instagram: @crochetcoralreef
Coral Reef Restorations: @coralgardeners, @reefcheckfoundation
Photos: “Crochet Coral Reef: TOXIC SEAS” – Bleached Coral exhibition at Museum of Arts and Design, New York
Additional Articles
Crochet Coral Reef: TOXIC SEAS by Margaret & Christine Wertheim & The Institute for Figuring at Museum of Arts and Design, New York (2016-2017)
Local Refugee Women Crochet Plastic Bags Into Craft Items and Earn Income While Saving Environment by Staff at Milwaukee Independent (2019)
Coral Bleaching by Tresa Walker at Ocean First Institute
Weaving in the Andes Mountains by Stephanies Amann at The Kind Craft
Native American - Indigenous Finger Weaving by Kelly at Kelly’s Classroom Online
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